Bomb threat target Ahmedabad schools via Email; Similar incident unfolded in Delhi days earlier

Ahmedabad witnessed a concerning development on May 6 as nearly six schools in the city received bomb threats via email. Promptly, the Ahmedabad Police launched an investigation into the matter, reassuring the public and emphasising the importance of maintaining calm, especially with the upcoming polling day.

The schools which got the threat emails were — Delhi Public School (Bopal), Anand Niketan (Bopal), Asia English School (Vastrapur), Calorex School (Ghatlodiya), Amrita Vidyalaya (Ghatlodiya), New Noble School and ONGC Kendriya Vidyalaya (Chandkheda).

The police commissioner announced that an investigation into the authenticity of the email was underway. The threatening message surfaced just one day prior to Gujarat’s polling for all 26 seats, including those in Ahmedabad. The sender of the email, identifying themselves as Tauheed Warrior, issued warnings of imminent attacks by “Istishhadi” throughout the city. The email expressed intentions to enforce Sharia law in Gujarat and threatened violence against those opposing it.

In response to the threat, specialized teams, including the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS), the city crime branch, and the Special Operations Group (SOG), were deployed to ensure the safety of schools and conduct a thorough investigation into the matter.

These incidents come in the wake of a series of bomb threats targeting 131 schools in Delhi earlier in May. Despite the alarming nature of these threats, the Ministry of Home Affairs swiftly responded by issuing a statement dismissing the emails as hoaxes. The ministry had assured that all possible steps were taken to address the situation.

Authorities from the Delhi Police‘s anti-terror unit special cell linked the emails’ domain to Russia, suspecting that it was created using the dark web, an encrypted online platform known for concealing users’ identities and locations.

According to authorities, the threatening emails originated from the address “sawariim@mail.ru.” The use of the Arabic word “sawarim” in the email address has raised concerns, given its association with propaganda material used by the Islamic State (IS) in recent years.